Ugo Monye is to frame his 'stinking' purple England jersey and hang it alongside a signed photograph of Muhammad Ali hugging Pele.

While the latter cost the Lions wing and one-time Arsenal trialist £450 in an auction, the former threatened to cost him his Test status after the Twickenham shocker to beat them all.

For that reason it will form the rogues' section of Monye's private gallery, a constant reminder of his 'absolute stinker' as a makeshift full back against Argentina last month when the England non- performance, with Lewis Moody's notable exception, stank to high heaven.

Moving on: Monye is ready to roll again for England after his nightmare at full back against Argentina

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'It's nice to have trophies and jerseys full of happy memories but
it's also good to have the odd bad one so that you remember what it was
like,' said Monye.

'That's why I made a point of keeping the purple jersey after the Argentina game rather than swapping it.

'If I ever think I'm feeling a touch complacent or getting above my
station, it will be there on the wall to remind me. Memories like that
keep your feet on the ground.'

Butter fingers: Monye was restored to the wing in England's following game against New Zealand

That Monye survived the nightmarish experience with his international place intact will make it all the more meaningful.

As he prepares for a busy Sunday trying to save Harlequins tumbling
out of Europe at home to Sale followed by Wembley for the final of X
Factor, the 26-year-old Londoner admits to having feared the worst
about his 'X minus Y factor' against the Pumas.

'I was afraid I wouldn't be picked again, and justifiably so,' he said.

'You are playing for your country and if you're below par, you
shouldn't be there. That was the worst game I've ever played in my
life. I knew there was a danger I'd be dropped until (backs coach)
Brian Smith told me on the Monday night, "We'll write that one off.
We're going to play you against New Zealand - on the wing".'

It amounted to a tacit admission from England manager Martin Johnson that he had got it wrong.

'It was great to know that Johnno believed I had the mental
strength to come back and play well the following week against New
Zealand, which I did,' added Monye.

'One bad game doesn't mean you're a bad player. I hope I proved that I belong on the big stage, not that I ever doubted it.

'I never envisage myself playing like that again. People have
knocked my aerial ability since then, but I consider that one of my
strengths. The fans pay a lot of money to come and support us at
Twickenham. For us to perform as poorly as we did gave them every right
to voice their frustration. Had I been in the crowd, I might have been
booing as well.

In the past: Monye intent on putting his purple haze horror show behind him

'The first thing I did was go home and watch the video. You could
hide from the reality but I like to face every-thing head on. I used
the pause and rewind buttons a lot, going over every mistake in detail.
A few of the boys went out for dinner that night but, to be honest, I
didn't want to be around anyone.

'I sat through the whole match again on my own and spent the
weekend alone. You take a mental bashing but you've got to be tough
enough to come back from it. I went to church on Sunday, which was good
because the sermon was all about healing in its various forms.

'A lot of people sometimes need that arm put round them for some
psychological healing. I love going to church. I feel cleansed every
time I go and ready to face a new week. I wanted to make sure I'd be in
the right frame of mind for training on Monday morning.

Deep purple: Monye has accepted the criticism from the Argentina game and moved on

'You can overdo the self-analysis about why it went wrong and
there's no point beating yourself up when there isn't a positive
outcome. People have said, "Well, it was Johnno's fault because you
shouldn't have been playing full back". But the mistakes I made were so
elementary - catching and passing - that the number on your back
doesn't come into it.

'I didn't have even a basic skill level that day. I haven't a clue
why and I pray to God it never happens again. Without wishing to sound
blasé, I put it down to just one of those really bad days. I had loads
of texts from family and friends saying, "It's all right, don't worry".
And I'm thinking, "Come on, guys. I really appreciate the love and
support but I've played onebad game. That's all."'

Argentina on a dank day at Twickenham followed his first jolting
example that Test rugby is not always a bed of roses, the first Lions
Test in Durban when two tries went begging and his compatriot, Phil
Vickery, took a beasting in the scrum from 'The Beast', Tendai
Mtawarira.

'I got a few headlines for the wrong reasons and Phil had a tough
time as well. We're in the lift at the hotel the following Monday and
he said, "Mate, have you read the papers?" I said no and he said he
hadn't either but that his wife, mother, sister and everyone else back
home texted him saying, "We still love you". The low points give you a
better appreciation of the sport.'

Since then he has had to cope with recurring scandal at Harlequins
over Bloodgate, which forced Dean Richards's resignation as director of
rugby before a European Cup tribunal banned him for three years.

Headliners: Monye and Phil Vickery were both criticised following the Lions' First Test in South Africa

As a practising Christian with a strong sense of right and wrong, the grubby episode sat uneasily with Monye.

It is hard to imagine him tucking a sachet of tomato ketchup into his sock to fake a blood injury.

'Morally, of course, you would say no,' he said. 'But how you react
under that pressure with a European Cup semi-final at stake, you just
don't know.

'I didn't have a clue about a lot of the facts which subsequently
came out in the case, but it couldn't have been any worse. To cheat, to
lie about cheating, then get caught lying was a bad sequence of events.
But I have great sympathy for the people involved.

Bloodgate: The scandal that rocked rugby

'Dean, in my opinion, is not a cheat. In a high-pressure situation
he acted on instinct for what he thought was best for the club at that
precise moment. He's been a fantastic ambassador for English rugby. I
think he fell in love with Harlequins and his actions show how
desperate he was for the club to be successful.

'We've missed him a lot. At times it was almost as if there had
been a death in the family because he had such an impact. He made me
more hard-nosed, made me a better player defensively, mentally
stronger.'

The exuberant Londoner is smiling again, which could be bad news for Sale on Sunday and Wales at Twickenham in the New Year/

Ugo Monye is an ambassador for Maximuscle Cyclone, the UK's best selling 'all in one' muscle formula.